The following description relates to housing an electronic device.
Computer memory and other peripheral devices can be built into a computer or can be external devices selectively attachable to a computer through an external interface. Certain peripheral devices are now small enough to be housed in small, thin, card-shaped packages that are intended to be inserted into specially designed receptacles, typically found, for example, in portable personal computers or digital cameras. Because of the many possible methods of constructing the interface between the computer and such devices, standards have been developed by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (“PCMCIA”), Japan Electronic Data Interchange Council (“JEDIC”), International Organization for Standardization (“ISO”), Compact Flash Association (“CFA”), and others. Standards specify the shape and size of the device housing as well as the design of the connector/computer interface. Such peripheral devices, which may or may not conform to an industry standard, are generally referred to as PC cards.
One method for providing a plastic housing for a PC card is to create two injection molded shells, place an electronic device between the two shells, and then mate the two shells together, for example, by sonic welding or the use of an adhesive. An alternative method is to encapsulate an electronic device by injection molding both the top and the bottom of the PC card housing at one time. In order to hold the electronic device in place during encapsulation, locating pins are placed through the electronic device during the injection molding process to suspend the electronic device in place within the mold. The resulting PC card includes holes in both the housing and the electronic device from the locating pins (which do not form part of the finished PC card).